Mudblood Like Me
by Crystal-Ice2
Summary: Draco, against his dismay, is sent to live with a muggle born and their parents for the rest of the summer. Who does he have to live with? None other than Hermione. warningdark content DMHG Please RR!
1. Similar Knives

Disclaimer- J.K. Rowling owns all of the Harry Potter characters, not me.

**Chapter One**

The Malfoy Manor

"Put your napkin on your lap." Narcissa Malfoy sternly reminded her son as they sat down to the dinner table one cold, dreary night. The walls of the dining room in the Malfoy Manor were blood red, and the table a dark colored wood. A fire roared in the fireplace, but instead of bringing the room warmth and happiness, it added to the gloom.

"Yes mother." Draco said, in a false cheery tone. His mother annoyed him constantly about pointless table manners. Who cared whether he had a napkin on his lap? Draco rolled his eyes in an over-exaggerated manner when his mother was not looking.

Draco began picking at his food. He hated this food, he hated his mother, his father, his life. This house was hell for him, and he couldn't wait until the day he could leave this shit hole for good.

Draco stabbed his fork violently into his steak. His mother looked at him, smiling falsely he nose sticking up even farther.

"_Why does she look at me like that?_" Draco thought, annoyed. He imagined his steak was his mother's obnoxious smiling face, and he stabbed it repeatedly with his fork, each time more violent than the last.

Narcissa didn't even notice this sudden turn of anger in her son. She just went on chewing her own piece of steak, oblivious to the world around her. She didn't even notice when Draco slipped a steak knife into the cargo pocket of his khaki pants.

After his steak had been turned to shreds of meat, Draco began to eat it. He chewed angrily, causing pain in his jaw. After he finished his steak, he shoveled mashed potatoes in his mouth, trying to finish dinner as quickly as possible. He would do anything to get away from his mother right about now, even if it meant throwing up after dinner from eating to fast.

The Granger House

Hermione sat down at the dinner table after another trying day. Summer wasn't supposed to be like this. It was supposed to be a time for relaxing and getting a tan. Hermione, however, could do neither of those things because of all the pressure she was under.

Hermione was forced to babysit, volunteer at the local animal shelter, walk the neighbor's dogs, and work at her part-time job at the Crispy Chicken fast food restaurant. All of these things were forced upon her by her parents.

"How was your day dear?" Hermione's mother asked, as Hermione threw herself into one of the kitchen chairs. She was starving and exhausted, but tried to hide it from her parents. They expected so much from her, and expected her to be perfect at everything.

"It was great mother, just great." Hermione said, trying to sound cheerful. It was very hard, because, the truth was, she just couldn't handle all the stress she was under. She was about to snap.

Hermione's parents beamed at her as she helped herself to some of the mystery casserole that her mother had made for dinner. It was brown mush with green chunks of something in it. Hermione figured, well actually hoped, it was broccoli and not something else. Hermione, however, was so hungry, that she would eat just about anything at this point.

Hermione wolfed down her food, barely even tasting it, which was probably for the best. Her mother could be a good cook if she tried, but apparently this was one of the nights she just threw stuff in the refrigerator together to make a 'meal.' Hermione thought this was ironic. Her mother expected perfection, but didn't follow the same principles.

"Do you like it darling?" Hermione's mother asked. "One of the dental hygienists at work gave me the recipe."

So it hadn't been one of her mother's leftovers dishes. It was an actual attempt at a recipe. Hermione called these mystery meals. Of course, her mother knew nothing about this nickname. She thought Hermione absolutely loved her cooking.

"It's delicious." Hermione said, helping herself to seconds to please her mother.

Mrs. Granger beamed. "I thought you would. I made it just for you."

Hermione smiled back at her mother. Apparently Hermione's mom hadn't picked up on the fact that Hermione had hated casseroles for all of her life.

"_Oh well_," Hermione thought to herself. "_She'll pick up on it eventually_."

The Malfoy Manor

When Draco had cleared his plate, a tiny house elf came into the dining room and cleared both plates from the table. Draco began to get up from the table.

"Wait Draco honey," his mother said, stopping him in a half-standing position. "We're going to have desert."

An even smaller house elf was now making its way across to the table, holding two desert plates in each of her miniature hands.

"I'm not hungry." Draco replied, standing all the way up.

"Well you don't have to eat." his mother, giving Draco a phony smile (even though it was her real smile, Draco thought it to be very fake).

Draco turned his back towards the table and headed towards the door. She could have said something to him all through dinner. She just had to wait until he was about to leave.

Draco heard a sniffle from behind him. Rolling his eyes, he turned around to see his mother dabbing tears off of her bony cheeks.

"E-ever s-since your f-father was s-sent to A-az- that p-prison, I-I've t-tried to b-be good to y-you, I-I really h-have. D-do you r-really h-hate your own m-mother that m-much that y-you won't even s-sit and t-talk to me a-after d-dinner?"

Draco could have answered truthfully to his mother and said yes, but he decided against it. He would have had to listen to her wail all night. Draco sat back down in his chair and pretended to be interested. If his mother wasn't upset she could get through what she had to say faster.

Narcissa quickly wiped her hands on her sleeves before talking to Draco. "I was doing some thinking." she began.

Now that surprised Draco, he didn't think his mother did much thinking at all, but he let her continue, nonetheless.

"I was thinking that maybe we should make a name for ourselves as good citizens to the magical community." Narcissa began.

Draco stared at his mother. "_What the hell is she thinking?_"

"So, I signed you up for this special program."

"_Great_," Draco thought, "_she's putting me in a mental institution_."

"This program is for teenaged wizards who have magical parents that are interested in seeing how wizards with muggle parents live."

"You mean mudbloods." Draco said.

"You can't call them that now. You are in this program." Narcissa stated. These were her first words actually close to a command that she said to Draco since his father was sent to Azkaban that didn't have anything to do with table manners.

"What do you mean I'm in this program?" Draco said, starting to get angry.

"I signed you up. You are going to live with a wizard with muggle parents for the rest of the summer. You'll just return to Hogwarts after that."

"What the hell were you thinking? I mean, are you crazy? Even looking at mudbloods without scowling is an insult to our family name!" Draco shouted.

"You must think about this. It would be helpful to our name if we showed that we don't only like purebloods."

"But we do only like purebloods!" Draco bursted, standing up from his chair. "That's everything out family stands for!"

"Draco," Narcissa said, trying to remain calm, "We don't have a family anymore, that's just it. Your father is in prison. Without him we are nothing!"

"We are only nothing if we allow ourselves to become nothing! And that's what will happen if we go making friends with MUDBLOODS!"

"Muggle borns," Narcissa hissed. "And we are not having this conversation anymore. You will go live with the muggles, you will be nice, and you-will-enjoy-it!" Narcissa finished, putting extra emphasis on the last few words.

Draco stormed away from his mother up to his room, smashing an expensive vase to the floor in the process..

"NOW GO TO YOUR ROOM!" Narcissa shouted.

"YOU CAN'T MAKE ME GO TO MY ROOM, CAUSE I CHOOSE TO GO MYSELF!" Draco shouted back, already halfway up the stairs.

Narcissa pulled a small strand of her long blonde hair behind her ear that had ended up in front of her eyes during the fight. She picked up her desert bowl and stared at it. After a few seconds of calming down, she called to the house elf. "Clean this mess up and pack Draco's bags. He's leaving tomorrow."

The terrified house elf nodded and began clearing up the dishes. Narcissa served herself a large shot of vodka and chugged the whole thing, her face remaining expressionless.

Draco slammed the door behind him as he entered the room. He threw himself onto his bed, cursing, and pummeled his pillow until the feathers flew out, mixing with his cries of 'shit' and showering his whole bedroom.

The Granger House

"We have some good news for you dear." Hermione's father said halfway through dinner. "Your mother and I sign you up for a wizard host program."

Hermione looked up from her plate. "_This is just what I need, more stuff to worry about._"

Mr. Granger continued, "For the rest of the summer, a young wizard, who doesn't have non-magical people for parents, is going to stay with us. Then, that person is going to head off to Hogwarts with you."

"But I have so much to do already!" Hermione exclaimed.

Her parents shrugged this off, as if Hermione could stop sleeping to fit everything in.

Hermione felt her shoulders sink lower than she ever thought possible "Does this person already go to Hogwarts?"

"Of course dear." Hermione's father answered. "They just haven't experience what it is like living with people who aren't magical."

"What am I doing this for?" Hermione answered, trying not to think of who the mysterious guest would be. She knew it wouldn't be Ron, and definitely knew it couldn't be Harry. Ron could just ask to come over any old time, and Harry already lived with muggles. This didn't improve her mood much.

"It will look great on your college application." Mrs. Granger answered.

"I don't want to go to muggle college though." Hermione answered. "I want to have a job in the wizarding world. If I do that, I don't need to go to muggle college."

Hermione's parents looked offended. "But dear," Mr. Granger said, "You are going to become dentists just like us. You're going to take over our practice."

This was the last thing that Hermione had in mind. Her parents should know how passionate she was about being a witch, so why would she do something else with her life? Hermione decided to let it go.

Hermione gathered the empty plates and cleared the leftover casserole off of the table. She scooped it into an empty tupperware and stored it into the refrigerator, setting it up for a later leftovers experiment.

Hermione's father retreated to his den with the newspaper, and her mother was one room over in the living room, knitting.

Hermione scrubbed the table clean after all the dishes were cleared away. She then set on the task of washing all of them. For just a simple casserole, her mother sure had used a lot of dishes. Hermione sighed loudly and filled the kitchen sink with hot soapy water.

Hermione washed pot after pot, plate after plate, and fork after fork. To someone watching Hermione now, it would have looked like they had just had a dinner party for twenty people.

Hermione dried the dishes quickly, just wanting to go to bed. Because the dishes took so long, Hermione had a lot of time to think about her life, and she had reached a startling conclusion. She hated her life, her house, her parents, herself, and she wanted out. Tears dripped slowly out of her larger brown eyes.

Hermione had all the dished put away except for one large knife, in which Hermione had no idea what her mother used it for. She dried it slowly and carefully. Instead of putting it into the knife drawer when she was done, she carried it up to her room, hiding her tears and the knife out of view from her mother sitting in the living room.

The Malfoy Manor

As Draco lay on his bed, shouting curses, he felt a sharp pain in his leg. He rolled over to a normal seating position, with his feet hanging off the edge of the bed. On his right leg, there was a small blood stain, steadily growing larger and larger. Draco studied it for a moment, enjoying the pain before remembering the knife he had put in his pocket earlier.

Draco pulled the knife out of his pocket and studied the blood on it for a little while before raising it over his upturned wrist and making a deep gash through his flesh.

The Granger House

At that exact moment, Hermione raised her own knife over her thin wrist. Tears mixed with her blood as she made her first cut. She sobbed harder, not from the pain, but because of the hatred towards her life.

When Hermione thought that she had bled enough, she rushed into the bathroom that connected her room and the guest room and rinsed it under cool water. Hermione dabbed it gently with a towel, and fell to the bathroom floor, sobbing.

The Malfoy Manor

One of the small house elves scurried into Draco's room.

"Shit!" Draco shouted as he hastily tried to cover up his wound, with his pillow. The house elf pretended not to notice what Draco was doing, and headed straight over to the closet.

"What the hell are you doing?" Draco said angrily.

"Packing for your trip Mr. Malfoy, sir," squeaked the house elf, "It was Mrs. Malfoy's orders to get you ready to leave for tomorrow."

"I'm leaving tomorrow? Shit!" Draco said angrily, standing up from his bed. He then thought about the situation for a little bit longer. He could just ignore the stupid mudblood that he was stuck with and go off and do his own thing. Besides, he would be free of his mother until next summer.

Draco sat back down on his bed, grinning happily at the tiny elf. The house elf looked at Draco, became terrified, and hurriedly (but neatly) packed the rest of Draco's clothes.

"_Maybe this won't be so bad_." Draco thought, just happy that he could get rid of his mother.

**A/N: I forgot to mention that this fanfiction takes place summer before seventh year, but HBP did not happen. So for those of you who have read HBP, then this probably wouldn't make much sense if you were thinking that it took place after the sixth book. Anyways, thanks for reading and please review. I'll try and update soon:)**


	2. Their Paths Cross

Disclaimer- Do I really have to keep typing this thing out? The disclaimer in chapter one is in affect for the whole story. You know, the whole thing about J.K. Rowling owning Harry Potter.

**Chapter Two**

**The Malfoy Manor**

"Mr. Malfoy! Mr. Malfoy sir, please wake up!" squeaked one of the small house elves, pushing his small hands against Draco's shoulder.

"Huh? What?" Draco said, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "_Is it really morning already._"

"Your mother would like you to get dressed and meet her downstairs for breakfast." the house elf said in a very tiny voice.

"Well, my mother would like me to do a lot of things," Draco said under his breath.

The house elf picked up on this comment, but wasn't really sure how to respond. So, instead of saying anything, the house elf bowed himself out of Draco's bedroom, leaving the door open.

Draco pulled himself off of his king sized bed. He was still a bit groggy from the night before. It was then that he remembered what he had done the night before.

Draco glanced at his wrist, at the gash that he had made. Draco decided that when that cut was healing, his whole past would heal too. After this school year, he would be seventeen, and he would be able to live far away from his mother.

Running his fingers over the cut, Draco wiped away all his bad childhood memories, his mother, his father, this house. He made himself a promise that this day would be the last time that he had would set foot in this house.

Draco stepped into the shower, letting the hot water pour over his sore muscles. His mother made him play Quidditch for five hours a day, so he was getting quite toned. After standing still under the hot stream of water for at least five minutes, Draco decided that he should hurry his shower up a little bit. The sooner he got ready, the sooner he could leave.

**The Granger House**

"Hermione! Hermione, get up dear!" Mrs. Granger shouted from downstairs. "Your father and I would like to talk to you over breakfast!"

Hermione opened her eyes groggily, not wanting to wake up from her dreams. She groaned loudly at the thought of talking to her parents over breakfast. They were most likely going to give her more things to do, as if she didn't have enough already.

Hermione stepped into her bathroom and splashed cold water on her face. This certainly woke her up. She decided that she was awake enough for a shower and stepped into the stream of hot water emitting from her shower head.

Steam filled the bathroom as Hermione took the longest shower that she had ever, in her life, taken. She closed her eyes, wishing she was still asleep.

"HERMIONE!" came her mother's shout from the bathroom door. She rapped her knuckles on the door. "Hurry up in there!"

Hermione snapped her eyes opened, and reluctantly turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. She dressed quickly in sweat pants and a t-shirt, and then looked at herself in the mirror. She looked terrible.

"_Oh well._" Hermione thought, "_Nothing a little make-up won't fix._"

Hermione applied coverup, mascara, and eyeshadow, taking extra care with the large bags under her eyes. After all, her mother would harp on her if she looked like she had just woken up.

After Hermione did a double check in her mirror, she headed downstairs to breakfast, almost not wanting to know what her parents wanted to talk to her about over breakfast.

**The Malfoy Manor**

After Draco had dressed and brushed his hair, he headed downstairs to the dining room. His mother was already sitting at the table, drinking steaming coffee in tiny sips. Draco hated coffee. Narcissa looked up when Draco entered the room.

"Good morning Draco dear." Narcissa asked. "How did you sleep last night?"

Obviously she had chosen to forget all about last night. Draco decided to play along. "I slept just wonderfully mother, thank you."

Narcissa smiled at her son as the two house elves brought out the breakfast plates. The house elves set one in front of Draco and one in front of Narcissa.

Draco stared at his plate. His plate was filled with more than generous proportions of everything you could think of. The sight off all of it made him sick.

His mother was already taking little nibbles off the items on her plate, which Draco noticed did not have as much food on it.

"_Here goes nothing._" Draco though as he dug into his plate. He figured he could eat about half of it and spread the remaining items around on his plate so his mother would think that he ate more than he really had. He did just that, and it worked.

"Draco, you certainly were hungry." Narcissa commented once the plates were cleared.

Draco nodded, feeling slightly nauseated from all of the food in his stomach.

"It's for the best. You'll have a long day ahead of you." Narcissa continued. Draco nodded as if he was agreeing again, but he wasn't really listening to her.

"Anyway, I have a bus ticket all set up for your departure at ten o'clock. It should only take about two hours, so you should be there around lun-."

"Wait a minute." Draco interrupted. "I'm taking a bus?"

"Of course honey. I want you to have the full experience of being a muggle." Narcissa said, pleased with herself for having thought to do this.

Draco, however, couldn't be any angrier. "_Dammit._" he thought to himself, two hours was a really long time.

"Its all been arranged with the muggles." his mother explained, "They will meet you at the bus stop. It's about a half-mile from their house. Doesn't that sound wonderful?"

Draco smiled through gritted teeth. "_Don't worry about it._" he said to himself, "_You'll get out of this house for good. You don't ever have to come back._"

These thoughts helped Draco's mood a little bit. It was just enough to carry on a civil conversation with his mother before heading back up to his room to make sure that everything that he wanted to take was in the suitcase.

**The Granger House**

"At last!" Hermione's mother exclaimed when Hermione stepped into the kitchen.

"We were beginning to wonder if you had been sucked down the drain." Hermione's father added with a chuckle as Hermione sat down at the table.

Hermione smiled warmly at her father as she helped herself to some cereal. "What did you want to talk to me about?" Hermione asked.

"Well," Mrs. Granger began, "We know that the young wizard that you are hosting will be coming today, so-"

Hermione choked on her cereal. "They are coming today?"

"Of course dear." Mr. Granger put in. "Didn't we tell you last night?"

Hermione racked her memory for any hint of her parents telling her that the person would be coming today. Nothing came up, so Hermione couldn't help but feel a little bit angry at her parents.

"_They should have told me._" Hermione thought, becoming really nervous.

Her mother continued, "So anyway, the young wizard will-."

Hermione interrupted again. "Wizard? As in not a witch? Meaning not a girl?"

"That's right dear. There were an more boys signed up for the program then they could fit in the male host's houses, so they asked us if it would be okay if a male came here. If I hadn't agreed to this then you wouldn't have been able to do the program at all."

"_How unfortunate that would be._" Hermione thought sarcastically.

"Now please let me finish," Mrs. Granger said more sternly. "As I was saying, the young man is coming today, so we thought that we would let you quit all of the activities that you are in now, except for your job, so that you can have more time to spend with him."

Hermione actually felt relieved, but shocked. Her parents had been making her do so much, that she would jump to the chance to quit something. "Thank you."

"No problem sweetie," her father said, serving himself some more coffee.

Hermione took a sip of her orange juice. She wasn't really a big fan of coffee.

"Oh, by the way honey," her mother began, "You are supposed to meet the young man at the bus station at noon."

Hermione glanced at the kitchen clock. It was only nine o'clock, so she had enough time to get everything the guest room ready.

As Hermione finished her cereal, she began to get a little excited about meeting this wizard. Who know? Maybe it will actually be fun.

**The Malfoy Manor**

"Draco! We need to get going!" Narcissa called from the bottom of the stairs. Draco quickly put his wand in his pocket (you never know when you may need it) and emerged from his bedroom lugging his trunk behind him. Each of the two house elves were carrying a suitcase.

Draco pulled his trunk behind him, causing it to slap loudly against each step. Draco's grip on the trunk handle slipped, and sent the trunk bouncing down the stairs.

"Shit!" Draco swore.

"Draco!" his mother said, shocked. "Watch your language!"

Draco ignored his mother and went sprinting after the trunk, which was already speeding out of control. The house elves picked up their pace, trying to keep up with Draco.

The trunk was too fast for Draco, so he did not reach it in time. It traveled faster when it reached the bottom and smashed into the wall. Draco swore loudly again, and his mother gave him another stern look.

Draco needn't get so worried. Everything remained in the trunk and there was only a small dent in the wall.

"You need to be more careful," Narcissa scolded. "I want you to make a good impression to these muggle parents. We need them to see h-."

At this moment Draco tuned his mother out. He didn't really care about impressing the muggles. Narcissa continued her lecture all the way out to the car. She was going to drive him as far as the bus stop.

The house elves loaded the suitcases and Draco's trunk into the car with much difficulty. Draco had to help them at one point so his trunk wouldn't flatten them against the driveway like two pancakes.

His mother started the car as Draco hopped into the front seat. She had finally stopped her lecture. They pulled out of the driveway and Draco took the last glimpse of the Malfoy Manor that he ever hoped to experience.

"You know Draco," his mother began into what Draco thought was going to be another lecture. This time he was wrong. "I want you to write to me every once in awhile. Although I might be hard to reach for the first month."

"Where are you going to be?" Draco asked, puzzled.

"I'm going on vacation to some island in the Caribbean. I could use some relaxation." Narcissa answered.

"_So that's why she wanted me out of the house._" Draco thought. "_She just wanted to go on some dumb trip._"

Draco was actually mad at his mother for this. Why couldn't she just tell him the truth for once?

"I don't think I'm going to send any owls." Draco said bluntly. His mother gave him a quizzical look.

Draco continued, in a way that almost mocked his mother, "I want to live as much like a muggle as possible, so that would include not sending letters."

"Oh, of course," Narcissa said in a disappointed manner. Draco looked forward at the road, smirking.

**The Granger House**

Hermione carefully made the bed in the guest room. She folded the sheets neatly and placed clean towels on the bed. She emptied out the dresser drawers to give the wizard some space to put clothes, opened the windows, and vacuumed and dusted until the room was spotless. Hermione admired her work and then went to clean the bathroom.

There were only two bathrooms in the house. Her parents bathroom downstairs, and Hermione's bathroom. Hermione's bathroom connected to her room and the guest room, so her guest and she would have to share.

Hermione scrubbed the shower until it glowed the brightest white that she had ever seen. He vacuumed the white tile floor and cleaned the sink and toilet.

"_This would be so much easier with magic._" Hermione thought as she scrubbed the grout around the whirlpool bathtub.

When everything was finally done, Hermione peeled off her latex gloves and stored them under the counter top. In the process of doing this, Hermione saw the cut that she had made the previous night.

She stared at it for a moment, and ran her finger over the cut the knife had made. Thinking fast, Hermione grabbed her watch from one of her bathroom drawers. She slipped it on over her hand, and slid it into place over her cut, hiding it from the world.

**The Malfoy's Car**

Narcissa pulled the black Malfoy family car into a parking space at the bus stop. Draco hurried out of the car and pulled his trunk and suitcases out of the car. He hulled his luggage to the bus stop sign, before his mother even got out of the car.

Draco knew his mother was going to put on an emotional good-bye. She could probably sense that he was a little bit mad at her.

"Have a wonderful time Draco honey!" Narcissa said as she pulled Draco into a tight embrace. Draco awkwardly patted her back as the bus pulled up.

"Bye mother." Draco said as the driver came out and loaded other passenger's bags.

Draco gave the driver his ticket and found a seat near the back. He settled in a seat near the window and began listening to the Weird Sisters on his CD Player. At least muggles were good for something.

When all the passengers were seated, the bus driver took off about ten minutes after ten o'clock. It was late, but that would soon help out a certain Hermione Granger.

**The Granger House**

Hermione was lying down on her bed reading a magazine, and absentmindedly stroking her orange cat Crookshanks. Hermione glanced at the digital clock on her bedside table. Hermione did a double take.

"_It can't possibly be 11:50 already!_" Hermione thought, alarmed. But, alas, the clock was not wrong.

Hermione hurriedly put some tennis shoes on and rushed downstairs. Her mother was sitting in the living room, knitting again.

"Wait Hermione!" her mother shouted once Hermione was already halfway out the door.

Annoyed Hermione ran back into the living room. "What mother?"

Mrs. Granger looked at Hermione, deeply offended by her daughter's haughty tone. "Is that what you are wearing?"

Hermione looked down at her sweat pants, tennis shoes, and t-shirt. "Yes."

"Well you can't wear that. It looks like you just woke up." Mrs. Granger said, then added, "Go upstairs and change."

Hermione knew that there was no point in arguing with her mother. So she ran back upstairs to her room and threw open her closet. She quickly grabbed a khaki skirt, a black tank top, and some matching flip flops.

Hermione hurried back downstairs, her sandals clacking noisily against the wooden steps. When she reentered the living room, she didn't even look at her mother. She was already going to be late.

Hermione rushed out the front door and slammed it behind her. It was only a half-mile to the bus stop, so she hoped she made it in time.

Hermione ran most of the way, not even caring if her skirt flew up. She wanted to make a good impression on whoever it was.

When Hermione reached finally reached the bus stop, there was no one else there. She looked at her watch. It was a little past ten. Hermione was actually thankful that the bus was late.

Hermione sat on the bench and waited. She didn't sit there long, because a few minutes later the bus pulled up towards the bus stop, and the driver flung open the door.

Draco stood up from his seat and looked at the window and saw a pretty girl with brown hair sitting on the bench. She was the only one there, so Draco assumed that she was waiting there for him. Maybe this wouldn't be a bad summer at all.

Slightly smirking Draco headed off of the bus. The smirk was wiped off of his face when he recognized who it was at the station.

"Malfoy!" Hermione said, alarmed at who had just gotten off of the bus.

Draco stopped dead in his tracks. He just stared at the witch standing in front of him.

"_This isn't happening._" Draco and Hermione thought at the same time. "_This just isn't happening._"

**A/N: Thanks for reading. Please review!**


	3. Not That Bad

Disclaimer- J.K. Rowling equals owner of Harry Potter and other characters.

**Chapter Three**

"Hey!" shouted people blocked in the bus. "Get a move on!"

Draco snapped out of his disbelief induced trance and got out of the way. The passengers filed off of the bus, but Draco didn't notice them. His head had already been filled of horrifying thoughts of living with a mudblood all summer, but this was even worse. He had to live with Granger, his archenemy since day one.

Hermione didn't know what to say. All the thoughts that were rushing through her head she couldn't possibly say out loud. The driver, not caring what could unfold before him, began unloading the luggage.

Draco decided that it was now or never, so he grabbed his trunk and two suitcases and slammed them angrily on the bench were Hermione had been sitting. Hermione was slightly worried by his actions.

"So I guess I'm stuck with you." Draco said angrily, breaking the silence between them. Hermione just nodded bitterly and grabbed Draco's suitcases.

"Let's get going then." Hermione said, heading down the street. Draco grabbed his trunk, and hurriedly followed Hermione.

Hermione couldn't believe who she was leading to her house. "_Besides,_" Hermione thought to herself, "_why is Draco even in this program? His parents are complete muggle haters._"

Hermione shuddered at the thought of how Draco would treat her parents. She slowed down a bit, dreading the moment that she walked through her front door, with Draco in tow.

"Mudblood!" Draco called from behind her. "Are you trying to get rid of me?"

Hermione whirled around and saw just how far behind Draco was. It had to be at least twenty or thirty feet. His trunk was definitely weighing him down. She only slowed down momentarily, almost wishing that she would lose Draco.

Hermione sighed and backtracked to where Draco was walking slowly. His heavy trunk was slipping from his grip, so Hermione placed the two suitcases on top of it, and grabbed the handle from Draco.

"I can do it myself you know." Draco protested, not wanting Hermione to help him with anything.

"Well, I'd like to get to my house before the dinner." Hermione said bluntly.

"Why?" Draco asked. "Do you have a hot date tonight?"

"No." Hermione answered simply, and the conversation stopped.

Draco finally excepted the fact that Hermione was going to help him, no matter what, so the two of them continued to carry the trunk down the street. The sun was directly overhead now, and Hermione could feel the sweat on her neck and forehead. She badly wanted to take a cold shower.

"_I'm glad my mom made me change out of my sweat pants._" Hermione thought.

Draco and Hermione didn't talk much during that half-mile. Draco couldn't help but take a second glance at Hermione. She actually was not that bad looking.

"_What are you talking about?_" Draco thought fiercely to himself. "_She's a mudblood._"

"Here we are." Hermione said, as she started up the driveway of a quaint two-story white house.

"_I guess this isn't so bad._" Draco thought as Hermione and he carried his luggage. At least is wasn't a tiny shack by a junk yard. It was acceptable.

They now reached the front door. Hermione put down her end of the trunk, and Draco followed suit. He suddenly felt like he had just gone out for the night and was dropping his date off.

"_Like I'd ever go on a date with Granger._" Draco thought.

"My parents don't know that we hate each other, so let's just try and pretend that we get along." Hermione said seriously. "Also, no calling me a mudblood either, just cause I'm sick of it. Understand?"

Draco nodded, just glad that this lecture was over. It might be hard to get along with Granger, but he didn't want to get sent home and have to see his mother.

Hermione pushed open the front door, and it swung noiselessly on its hinges. When the pair entered the house, lugging Draco's luggage behind them, they saw that Hermione's parents weren't in the living room.

"_That's weird._" Hermione thought. "_They are always waiting in the living room._"

Draco set his trunk down and admired the room. It was nice and cozy. Draco gave a little jump when a fluffy orange cat rubbed against his legs.

Hermione laughed slightly, causing Draco to blush with embarrassment, which Hermione missed.

"That's Crookshanks," Hermione said.

Draco nodded. He remembered seeing the cat around Hogwarts. It was always hanging around on the grounds.

"Let me see if my parents are here." Hermione said and headed towards the kitchen. There was only a short note on the table saying that they had gone and gotten things for lunch. Hermione was actually kind of angry. She didn't want to be alone with Draco any longer.

Hermione stepped back into the living room. "They went out to get food, but they should be home soon."

"I guess I'll just show you around then." Hermione said, shrugging her shoulders.

Hermione then preceded to show Draco all the downstairs rooms (the living room, kitchen, her father's den, and the master bed and bath).

"Let's get your stuff and I'll show you your room upstairs." Hermione said, grabbing the two suitcases and heading towards the stairs. Draco grabbed his trunk and followed Hermione.

As they were going up the stairs, Draco couldn't help but notice that Hermione's skirt was blowing up as she walked up the steps. Draco did a quick peek.

"Not bad." Draco muttered, but a little to loudly.

"What did you say?" Hermione asked, knowing full well what he said. It actually kind of scared her. She turned around and saw Draco smirking at her.

She carefully made her way up the rest of the stairs, a little slower though. They finally reached the top landing. Draco noticed that there were only three doors.

"Here's your room." Hermione said, opening the door on the far left. Draco followed her into it, and set his trunk on the floor. It was very neat and clean.

On the right wall of the room, Draco noticed another door. "Where does that lead?"

"Oh, that's the bathroom." Hermione answered, opening the door.

Draco noticed that everything in the bathroom was a bright white. He also noticed that there was a door across from the other one.

"What about that door?" he asked, though he already knew the answer.

"That's my room." Hermione said, not going to open that door. "We have to share a bathroom because there are only two in the whole house. Draco wanted to see Hermione's room, for no apparent reason. He supposed that he would see it at a later time.

Hermione heard the front door open from downstairs, and her parents voices carried upstairs.

"I'll introduce you to my parents." Hermione said heading back towards the stairs.

"I don't know about that." Draco said, and Hermione turned around and gave him a puzzled look. "I think it's a bit early in our relationship for me to meet your parents. Unless of course, you think that we are made for each other."

Hermione wasn't quite sure what to think of this, so she said, "We only have to pretend to get along when my parents are around. It doesn't matter if we are by ourselves."

"_Of course,_" Hermione thought, "_I hope he wouldn't say that in front of my parents._"

Hermione found her parents in the kitchen, putting groceries away.

"Mom, Dad," Hermione said when she and Draco entered the room. "This is Draco Malfoy. Draco, these are my parents, Henry and Karen Granger."

"Nice to meet both of you." Draco said politely and shook both of their hands, and with a firm grip, which Hermione thought was a plus.

"_What am I talking about? A plus?_" Hermione mentally slapped herself.

"What's for lunch?" Hermione thought, her stomach rumbling.

"I'd thought I'd make your father's favorite, BLT's." Mrs. Granger said.

"They sound wonderful." Draco said.

"You've never had a BLT?" Hermione asked, surprised.

Draco shook his head. "Is it a muggle thing?"

Hermione shrugged, "It could be, I don't really know."

Lunch was uneventful. Draco put his charm on, and Hermione's parents fell in love with him. Hermione was relieved. Draco could actually be pretty nice when he wanted to. Hermione cleared the dishes after everyone was finished.

"That was delicious." Draco commented, and Hermione's parents beamed.

Mrs. Granger glanced at the kitchen clock. "Oh!" she exclaimed. "Henry and I really should be going. We have a couple of appointments this afternoon. We're dentists."

"We should be back before dinner." Henry added.

Hermione's heart sank. She would be alone with Draco again. "_Great, just great._"

Mr. and Mrs. Granger left the kitchen and the house, leaving Draco and Hermione alone.

"I'd better unpack." Draco said, as he stood up from the table.

Hermione nodded as he left the room. She decided to leave the dishes in the sink and to head upstairs. She wanted to write to Harry and Ron. They should know what is going on.

Hermione sat at the desk in her room. She was aware of Draco's shuffling around in the his room. Hermione focused on her first letter, which was to Ron. She wrote, in her neat handwriting.

_Dear Ron,_

_How is your summer? Mine's going well, except for the fact that Malfoy is going to be spending the summer here. Which means that I won't be able to come to the Burrow. I'm so sorry. You know I really wanted to come. _

_Anyways, as you are probably outraged by the very mention of Malfoy's name, let me tell you that it wasn't my idea. My parents signed me up for this stupid program where a pureblood goes and stays with a muggle-born witch or wizard. It's just my luck that I'm stuck with him._

_Please don't worry about me though. Everything will be fine. I hope all is well with your family. I'll talk to you soon._

_Hermione_

_PS- I have to send this by ordinary mail because I don't have an owl at the moment. Please send your reply back with Pig so that we can talk easier._

Hermione folded the letter and sealed it inside an envelope. She carefully wrote out Ron's address and put a stamp on it.

Hermione wrote another letter to Harry, which was very similar. She sealed, addressed, and put a stamp on it.

Hermione headed downstairs, with both letters in her hands. The mail man was at the door when Hermione reached it, so she just handed it to him and took the day's mail.

"Thank you," she said, as the man headed towards the next house. "_That was perfect timing._"

Hermione headed back up to her room, planning on doing some reading. Draco had not yet come out from his room, so Hermione thought that she would just leave him alone. She wasn't sure if this was more for him, or for her.

Hermione opened _Hogwarts: A History_ for about the thousandth time. She had mostly everything memorized, and probably knew it better than the person who had written the book, but that didn't stop her.

The afternoon just disappeared, and Hermione soon realized that it was already after five o'clock. Hermione jumped off her bed in a hurry, scaring Crookshanks out of his fur.

At that moment, Hermione heard her parents walk inside the house. She headed out of her room and to Draco's door, and knocked.

"What is it?" Draco asked opening the door. Hermione noticed that he had been reading because there was a book open on his bed.

"_So we have something in common_." Hermione thought surprised. She realized Draco was waiting for her to answer his question.

"Do you want to head on downstairs for dinner?" Hermione asked.

"I don't know, this is getting kind of serious really fast." Draco said. "Dinner with your parents already?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. That was already the second time that Draco had mentioned the two of them dating. Did it mean anything? Hermione shook it off and headed downstairs. Draco wasn't far behind.

Mrs. Granger had worked at lightning speed, and there already was a casserole in the oven. The casserole part was the only thing that Hermione didn't like.

Withing about fifteen minutes, all four of them were sitting at the table, eating who-knows-what, and actually having a decent conversation. Draco was continuing to surprise Hermione. Of course, she hoped he just wasn't doing this, and was then planning on doing something evil later.

Dinner was just as uneventful as lunch. However, when Hermione stood up to clear the dishes, Draco helped her.

"You don't have to do that." Hermione said. Draco just shrugged his shoulders, and took the dishes to the sink.

After the dishes were all done, the table was cleared, and Hermione's parents had retired to their room, Hermione and Draco headed upstairs together.

"I'm just gonna go to bed." Draco said, opening his bedroom door. "Good night."

"Night." Hermione said, heading into her room. Even though she had taken a shower this morning, she really wanted to take one now.

So Hermione grabbed her pajamas, and headed into the bathroom. She quickly undressed and stepped into the shower.

Hermione quickly washed her hair, and scrubbed her whole body. Just as she stepped out of the shower, Draco walked into the bathroom.

Hermione yelped and frantically searched for a towel to cover herself up. Draco hurriedly slammed the door. He sincerely said an apology through the door.

Draco changed into his pajamas and laid down on his back. He put his hands behind is head and crossed his feet. He couldn't get Hermione out of his head. And now that he thought back to her in the bathroom, he couldn't help but think that he actually liked what he saw.

Back in her own room, Hermione laid down on her bed. She was slightly embarrassed by what had happened, but she knew it was an accident. After all, Draco had apologized. Before she drifted off to sleep, Hermione's thoughts wandered to Draco, already asleep in the other room.

**A/N:** **I finally posted! It took me forever cause I couldn't find the motivation to do anything. MANY THANKS to everyone who reviewed. I'm so glad you like my story! Anyways, I'm starting school tomorrow, so I don't know how soon I am going to be able to update. I promise I will though cause I do not want to abandon this story. I hate doing that. Thanks for reading and please review. I need input:)**


	4. Rope Swings

Disclaimer- J.K Rowling owns all Harry Potter characters.

**Chapter Four**

Hermione opened her eyes slowly. She could hear water running from the shower and could see sunlight streaming in through the window. Hermione stole a quick glance at her alarm clock. Her eyes widened as she registered what time is was: 11:30.

She quickly jumped out of bed and ran to get clothes for the day. Without even thinking she rushed to the bathroom and opened the door. At that very moment a Draco was stepping out of the shower. It took Hermione a second to fully comprehend what had happened, but when it did, her face turned a bright red, and she slammed the bathroom door.

Draco's hair dripped water in front of his eyes and he could not see a thing. He quickly dried himself off and then went back into his room to get completely ready.

Hermione was too embarrassed to go back into the bathroom, for fear that Draco was still in there, so she got ready in her bedroom. She knew she couldn't avoid him any longer when she heard his bedroom door opened and feet slowly descending down the stairs.

"_This is so embarrassing." _Hermione thought as she exited her bedroom and went downstairs.

When she walked into the kitchen her parents were sitting at the table eating lunch (since it was already noon) and in deep conversation with Draco. Draco looked up as she entered the room and pretended that nothing ever happened.

"Good morning Hermione." said Mr. Granger. Hermione smiled at her father and uttered a 'morning' as she went to make herself a sandwich.

"Your father and I decided to take lunch off to see what your plans for the day would be." Mrs. Granger started. Hermione raised her head slightly. "You really should have gotten up earlier you know. Draco toured the town by himself while you were sleeping. You really do need to be more responsible."

Hermione's grip tightened on the knife she was spreading peanut butter with. She was outraged at the fact that her parents were lecturing her in front of Draco! It was ridiculous.

"Of course mother, I'll try harder next time." She rolled her eyes as she went to sit down at the table. Only Draco noticed.

"So what interesting things did you see this morning." Mrs. Granger asked Draco sweetly.

"Lots of things actually. It was nice just wondering around town." Draco answered.

Mrs. Granger smiled as she finished the rest of her drink. "Well, Henry and I really should be getting back to the practice. We have a 1:30 that we need to prepare."

The couple cleared their dished from the table and Mr. Granger bade them farewell from the door. "Have a nice day you two!"

The door shut and the house became completely silent. Hermione just stared at Draco from across the table. It was she who finally broke the silence. "Sorry, about, you know, earlier."

Draco just shrugged and went on eating his lunch. They continued to eat in silence. When Draco had completely finished, he looked up at Hermione. "You really shouldn't let your parents get to you."

"What?" Hermione said, not quite sure what to think.

"Your parents, don't let them get to you." Draco repeated.

"Umm, okay. They don't." Hermione lied.

Draco wanted to tell her that he knew she was lying, but he didn't want to create an more awkward situation.

"So where did you go this morning?" Hermione asked, hastily changing the subject.

"What are you doing today?" Draco interrupted.

"Being a responsible person and taking you around town." Hermione answered.

"How about I take you somewhere?"

"Where?" Hermione asked quizzically.

"You'll see."

"Sure, why not." Hermione shrugged. "When?"

"Now."

Hermione cleared her plate and took Draco's empty one. She grabbed her purse from her room and met Draco in the living room.

"Ready." Hermione said, walking towards the door.

"So where is this mystery place you are taking me?" Hermione asked when they were out on the street.

"You'll find out when we get there." Draco answered, sticking his hands in his shorts pocket.

The walk only took about ten minutes, during which time Hermione realized that she had forgotten to put her watch on this morning, leaving her scar opened to the public. When she noticed it she tried to keep her other hand from hiding it, but that would probably end up gathering more attention to the situation, so she just gave up, hoping Draco wouldn't notice.

Hermione spent so much time worrying about her scar, that she didn't even realize where Draco had taken her. They were at the lake, a place where Hermione hadn't been for at least a few years.

"Here we are." Draco said.

"What are we doing here?" Hermione wondered."

"We are here to help you relax." Draco said matter-of-factly as he walked over to a tree with a large rope hanging from the thickest branch. He then began to take off his shoes.

Hermione was about to say that she didn't need to relax, when Draco bolted towards the rope and swung with one huge leap, landing in the middle of the lake.

Hermione's eyes widened. "What are you doing!"

"Relaxing." Draco shouted back as he floated around on his back in the warm water.

Hermione clutched her purse tightly, unsure what to do. She shifted her weight uncomfortably.

"Are you coming in or what?" Draco shouted, still floating around, staring up at the clouds.

"And why would I do that?" Hermione asked. "Why would I go swimming with you when you have been nothing but a complete jackass to me my entire life?"

Draco stopped floating for a moment, and turned his body upright to face her. "Because I am different now," he said softly.

"What the hell," Hermione said to herself, shrugging her shoulders. She reached down to take off her shoes, and then set her purse on top of them. She walked over to the rope and grabbed it with her right hand. She then leaned back hesitantly, and before she could change her mind, she was swinging through the air.

During that moment, Hermione felt peace. All of her troubles could no longer touch her. She felt complete peace with herself and the world. This was her time, with her hair whipping past her face, and her t-shirt making soft ripples against her body. In a split second, the moment was gone, and Hermione splashed into the water.

When Hermione surfaced, she couldn't help but smile. She tried to bring the moment back, but it was gone. When she finally came back to reality, she felt Draco looking at her.

"Relaxed?" he asked. With a smile, Hermione nodded. "You could try it more often you know." Draco added.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Hermione asked, actually kind of confused at the situation.

"Let's just say I know what it is like not getting along well with my parents. With the pressure and all." Draco said.

Hermione didn't know what to say. She knew the situation at his home, with his dad being in Azkaban. She started to open her mouth, but then stopped herself.

"Hermione," Draco said as he swam closer to her. "I think that we could help each other."

Hermione concentrated her eyes into Draco's. "And how can we do that?"

"I say your wrist this morning." Draco said, not answering her question.

Hermione immediately became uncomfortable, and, not wanting to continue the conversation, she quickly swam back to shore. Hot tears threatened to pore from her eyes, and she wished the feeling that the rope had given her could come back, and erase everything.

When Hermione reached the shore, she sat down, with her back towards the lake, on a large rock, and tried as hard as she could to fight back tears. She heard when Draco came out of the water and felt him as he got closer to wear she was sitting. Draco reached up and put his hand on her shoulder. Hermione jerked away. This was just too weird, being close with Draco.

Draco walked around the rock and sat next to her. "All I was trying to say is that we aren't as different as you might think." With that, he turned his own wrist over, and showed Hermione his scar from the previous night.

Hermione tenderly raised her own hand and traced the outline as Draco's scar. Draco reached his other hand over entwined his fingers with Hermione's. Hermione looked up at him, her brown eyes wide.

"Draco-" she whispered, but was stopped when Draco put his finger to her lips. Her slowly leaned in and softly kissed her on the lips, before pulling away. Hermione then leaned in, and kissed him, but stopped and pulled back.

"This is too weird Draco." she said softly as she let go of his hand and stood up. "We should go."

Draco felt the rejection weigh on his shoulders, but he knew exactly what she was saying. The two of them of all people. "_How is this happening? How could it be possible?_" Draco thought.

Hermione quickly put on her shoes, and Draco did the same. The walked the entire way back in complete silence and maintained an arm's length between them.

Thought were whirling through Hermione's head. _"Could I really have feelings for Draco? What would Harry and Ron think? Harry and Ron..." _Hermione thought.

When they reached the house, Hermione noticed that her parents weren't home yet. She went to get her keys from her purse, and she realized they weren't there.

"Shit! Where are my keys!" Hermione said anxiously.

"Are you sure they aren't in your purse?" Draco asked.

"Yes, I'm sure!" Hermione said, frantically searching through the entire contents of her purse. "My parents are going to be so pissed." With that she threw her purse down on the doorstep and plopped down.

Draco sat down next to her. "It's not like they meant to do it."

"That's not what they are going to think." Hermione said. "I guess we'll just have to wait here until they get home."

Draco shrugged, and the conversation between them ended.

Fifteen minutes later, Hermione spotted a large white owl flying towards her house. "Hedwig!" Hermione exclaimed as she stood up to greet the bird.

Hedwig dropped a letter at Hermione's feet and landed about a foot away.

Hermione picked up the letter and read Harry's distinctive handwriting.

_Hermione,_

_I am at the Burrow now, and really wish that you could be here. Why don't you just tell Malferret to go home? I really do hope that I will be able to see you before the school year starts. I cannot believe that we will be starting our sixth year at Hogwarts._

_Ron and I have been playing a lot of Quidditch. He is determined to make the team this year, and he actually is getting quite good. _

_Let Ron and I know if at any time, day or night, if you need rescue. Hopefully I'll see you soon?_

_-Harry_

Hermione couldn't help but smile at the letter, it was exactly like something that Harry would write, about the whole rescuing business. Hermione really wanted to see both Ron and him.

The whole time Hermione was reading the letter, Draco sat on the grass absentmindedly petting Hedwig. He only looked up when he heard a car pull into the driveway.

"What are you to doing outside?" Mr. Granger asked as he stepped out of the car.

"We got locked out," Hermione answered. "I can't find my key."

Mrs. Granger gave her a stern look and Hermione could just sense that she was going to tell her to be more responsible, but the lecture never came. Hermione was relieved.

Mr. Granger unlocked the door and stepped inside, with Mrs. Granger in tow. Draco stole one last look at Hermione, and then went inside.

Hermione stood outside for a few moments, not realizing that Draco was watching her through the window. She clutched the letter to her heart, wishing that she was with Harry and Ron right now. As she went to go inside, Hedwig took flight and flew off into the distance.

**A/N: I FINALLY POSTED! I am pretty excited about that. I'm so sorry for making all the nice people who reviewed wait so long. I have no idea when the next chapter will be up, but I promise it will come up at some point in time. Anyways, thanks to everyone who reviewed! I really do appreciate feedback:)**


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